The city has a climate that is good for agriculture : one fifth of Turkey's fruit and vegetable exports and more than 30% of its greenhouse areas come from just this one region.

There is no such thing as a perfect energy efficient process. The second law of thermodynamics states that all energy generating processes produce heat as a by-product.

Local governments in Europe are notoriously risk averse, city council officials and industry leaders won’t hesitate to tell you.

This year’s EU Green Week is clear in its focus: “green jobs for a greener future.” It’s highlighting how environmental policies are helping to create new work opportunities and a demand for new types of competences.

The pioneering city of Stuttgart, Germany, was one the first to apply an innovative financing scheme back in 1995 and since then it has been bearing its fruit: energy-efficiency funding has reduced the city’s CO 2 emissions by tens of thousands of tonnes.

It is one of the oldest port cities in history. Located on a large bay along the Aegean Sea, Izmir has enjoyed being a gateway to the world, thanks to its favourable position, at the crossroads of western and eastern civilizations.

Turkey’s energy production for urban areas could be 100% based on renewables within 30 years if appropriate public policy is implemented.

Making a city or district energy smart is, first and foremost, an exercise in good planning . However, such green planning tools are still in their infancy. The trouble is that every city is different, every district unique.

Cities have started to join forces to become more energy efficient . This trends stems from the findings of the first climate assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), published in 1990, which was quite alarming.

One of the  biggest challenges of retrofitting projects  is to make them attractive to residents. Now, one of them, the EU-funded project R2CITIES,  is analysing the initial first feedback received from residents  of the  Cuatro de Marzo  district.

Transforming districts into near-zero energy consumption urban areas could be a reality in the next few decades.

The quest towards low energy consumption in city districts requires many changes not only at building level, but also at district level.